Come What May
by lezerley
Summary: Lily hated James the first time she saw him and she believes that will never change. But when a suspicious visitor warns her to stay away from him, something tells Lily that this was a warning to be ignored...
1. Stay Away From Him

**Disclaimer: JK Rowling is the proud owner of the characters, setting, and everything else Harry Potter. Only a few characters and the plot are mine.**

**Summary:** Although Lily has never liked James, he somehow is changing. Lily finds herself feeling things she's never felt before and she's scared. The last time she was close to someone, they were ripped apart from her but eventually she allows James inside. But someone doesn't want Lily and James together and will do anything to keep them apart.

_**A/N:** This is my first story to publish on this site so bear with me as I figure everything out. I would really appreciate reviews (and constructive criticism!) so as soon as I receive a few, I'll add a new chapter! Enjoy:D_**

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**1. Stay Away From _Him_**

"Lily Evans, get down here!"

Lily sighed as she placed her journal aside and slipped off her bed. She put her bunny house-shoes on and walked down the stairs. Her mother was standing at the kitchen table, her reddish-brown hair looking distraught, and her face red with anger.

"Yes, Mum?" Lily said politely. She had no clue what she was sent down there for so she decided to not accuse her mother of assuming things and instead be well-behaved.

"Don't give me that sass, young lady! You know perfectly well why you're down here," Her mom said aggressively.

"Actually, I don't. And I'm not trying to give you any sass," Lily said innocently.

"Uh-huh. Well, I'll just let you find out for yourself, then," Mrs. Evans said and she handed her daughter a piece of parchment. Lily could have sworn she saw her mother's face twitch into an almost half smile, and then quickly disappear.

Lily looked down at the paper. It was a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; she could tell by the design on the parchment. _It's the middle of the summer and I already received my school supply list, so what could this be? _She thought to herself. But then, as she read the letter, her jaw dropped, her heart began beating faster, and she looked at her mom, who had a proud grin placed upon her face.

"AH!" Lily screamed and then started jumping up and down with excitement. Her mom opened up her arms and Lily ran into her, so hard that her mom lost her balance and had to take a couple steps backward to regain herself.

"I can't believe it's me! I can't believe they chose me!" Lily said excitedly.

"I'm so proud of you, Lils," Her mom said, beaming, using "Lils", Lily's nickname that only her family and closest friends knew.

"I'm proud of myself too!" Lily said and her mom laughed.

"I'll have to make myself a bumper sticker that says, "'My daughter is Head Girl at a Magic School!' That'll make the neighbors talk!" Lily's mom said jokingly and they both laughed. "Petunia! Guess what your sister just received in the mail!" Mrs. Evans called to Lily's younger sister, who was a Muggle, or a non-magical person.

"Don't know, don't care," Petunia yelled from her room. Rock music flooded the house as she turned her stereo louder.

Lily was used to Petunia's attitude by now…her sister had tried to stay as far away as she could from Lily's "terrifying magical life". Lily quickly forgot about her sister not caring and walked back upstairs, a smile upon her face, clutching the letter to her chest. She walked into her room and decided to write to her best friend, Mandy. Lily picked up her feather pen, grabbed a piece of parchment, and began writing. When it was finished, she read it over.

_Dear Mandy, _

How are you? I'm doing well…Actually, I'm doing great! Guess who's Head Girl? I'm so excited! This year is going to be so much fun! I hope you're doing well! Mum said you could stay with us for the rest of the summer. And since there's only 2 weeks left, she said she'd take us to Diagon Alley to get our supplies a few days before school starts and then stay in The Leaky Cauldron until school! It would be so much fun so send me a reply!

All my Love,  
Lily

Satisfied, Lily walked over to her owls' cage. Her owl, Jade, was a rich brown color with lighter brown feathers around her face and her green eyes glistened with sparkles (hence, the name Jade). She was a beautiful owl and her dad had given Jade to Lily just before the accident…Lily didn't want to think about that memory so she mentally stored it in a file cabinet in her mind. She tied the parcel to Jade's leg and sent her out the window. Lily watched her fly away until she could see her no more.

•••••

James watched as his beautiful neighbor watched her owl fly out the window. The gorgeous girls' auburn hair waved in the wind, and James could see her bright green eyes all the way from across the street. The girl noticed James watching her, gave him a scowl, slammed the window closed so hard that James thought for a second it would shatter to pieces, and pulled the curtains together so forcefully that part of the curtain ripped. James chuckled to himself and turned away.

_I'll have her some day,_ James thought to himself enviously.

James had liked Lily Evans since the first day he had seen her, which was when he was 4 years old. And every time Lily saw James, she scowled, even when she herself was at the age of four. James had been a stuck-up little boy and he had chased Lily around the playground trying to kiss her until the teachers scolded him. James was _still_ a stuck-up boy but he no longer chased Lily around playgrounds. He trapped her in corners and tried to kiss her. He set up plans so that the only way Lily could escape was to go out with James. But she always seemed to get away and every time she got away, she gained more hatred towards James. That spunky little girl always outwitted James. But James wouldn't let her get away this year, nope. _She's going to be wrapped around my fingers,_ James thought happily as he skipped downstairs. Being the clumsy one in the family, his feet ran ahead of him and he fell to the steps beneath him, quickly bumping each step till he hit the tile on the first-floor. He gently rubbed his bottom as he stood up, and he limped to the kitchen, where he continued to stare at Lily's bedroom through his kitchen window.

•••••

Lily hopped onto her bed happily and opened her diary.

_Dear Diary, _

I can't believe I'm actually Head Girl! I was kind of expecting it and all, but it feels so good to confirm it! I wonder who Head Boy will be…I hope it's not Potter…He was just watching me out of his window. That stupid prat… Will he ever figure out that I will NEVER fall for him? Probably not, he'll most likely stalk me all my life. I'll go into my kitchen one morning to fix break feast for my wonderful husband and Potter will be there with that dumb mischievous grin of his, trying to persuade me to run away from my loving, dear husband of mine, leave my three little children, desert the country with him, and start a new life. Ha! And I never can understand why so many girls like him! I do have to admit that he is good-looking and all, but how can they like him when he's so full of himself! He walks around school thinking no one is better than him, winking at random girls, who squeal and start jumping up and down with excitement, and passing through classes by being the class clown. And that friend of his, Sirius Black, who is by all means, handsome, walks around school just like James. Now, I have to say that Black is actually worth getting excited about if he touches you or compliments you because he is hott! But Potter? Ugh! And then Remus Lupin is the smartest and most sensible of the three, or four, if you count that rat, which follows them like a puppy dog. I don't know why Remus hangs out with Potter and Black. They're just putting him in trouble and Remus actually has something going for him in his life, while Potter and Black just fool around.

Wow! I sure did go on about The Mauraders! Where was I? Oh yeah, Head Boy. If it's Potter, I'll die. No, I'm thinking about Potter again!

Okay, new paragraph. I think Remus or possibly Arnold Weasley will be Head Boy. They're both extremely smart and I don't think they've had a single detention in all the years that they've been at Hogw-

"Lily! Petunia! Dinner's ready!"

Lily placed her diary aside and yelled back to her mom, "Ok! I'm coming!"

She slipped on her house shoes again and walked down the stairs.

"Not hungry!" Petunia yelled from her bedroom and Lily rolled her eyes at her mom.

"Guess I'll leave some in the fridge for her…again," Mrs. Evans said more to herself than to Lily.

"What are we having?" Lily asked happily. Her mom's cheerful mood about Lily's being Head Girl had now floated to Lily herself.

"A special dinner for a special girl!" Her mom said. Lily rolled her eyes. "You'll see in a minute! Just sit down and make yourself comfortable."

So Lily did as her mom said, and went into their den where their dining table was. She sat down in the same spot that she had sat in since she was 4 years old, which was when they moved there. Lily waited patiently and played with her napkin in the meantime.

Just as Lily was going to place her napkin in her lap, she heard her mom scream. Lily jumped out of her chair, sending it flying backwards, and ran full speed towards the kitchen.

"Mum? What's wrong? Are you okay?" Lily said as she rushed around the corner into the kitchen. Mrs. Evans was straddled on the floor, leaning against the kitchen cabinets, her hand against her chest, her heart beating hard and fast, her eyes wide with fear, and her legs trembling.

"Lily Evans. What a wonderful surprise," A strong voice said behind Lily.

Lily's eyes grew wide with fear as she slowly turned around. She regained her courage and tried to make herself look like she wasn't afraid. A dark figure was standing at the other end of the kitchen. The person didn't look to be any older than Lily, and she quickly wondered what a boy was doing in her kitchen. You couldn't see his face, because of a black hood covering it. Actually, you couldn't see _any_ of his body, for a cloak covered all of it. The only thing that Lily _could_ see, were his bright yellow snake eyes that stood out on the contrasting black body.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Lily said fiercely.

Her mother whimpered behind her and hoarsely whispered, "No Lils."

Lily ignored her and stared straight into those yellow eyes. As soon as her eyes met the strangers', it seemed as though he had shot her eyes with lasers, and Lily quickly looked away, her hands covering her eyes. An image of her father passed in her mind. _Oh God, please no. Not Daddy,_ Lily thought desperately.

"You don't like seeing your Daddy, do you Lils?" He asked heartily. Lily heard her mom gasp behind her. Lily scowled at the stranger before her.

"Don't ever use my nickname again with your filthy lips," Lily threatened angrily.

"Oh, I think I will use it every time I want to…_Lils_," He said pronunciating 'Lils' so it sounded as bad as 'Satan'. Another image of her father flashed in front of her eyes, only this one was when he was dueling with his enemy, her father's last duel ever.

"NO!" Lily screamed. _There is no way I can defeat this person if I let him get to me because of Daddy,_ Lily thought and tried to put her father away from her mind.

"Lily, Lils," Her mother whispered behind her.

Lily turned around to face her mother. She had never seen her mother looking older than she did now. Her worry lines showed worse than ever, her eyebrows arched in a feared way, her lips quivering, her eyes looking frightened.

"Mum," Lily mumbled and reached out to touch her mother's hand. Her fingers were an inch from her mother's when ropes shot out from behind Lily and wrapped her mother up against the cabinets behind her.

Lily spun around. "LET HER GO!" She yelled.

"No, she's just a distraction to you, another one, and I don't need that," He said and without seeing it, Lily could tell he was smiling. Lily scowled again. "I don't think your father would appreciate that." And he shot Lily with another image of her father, of her father dead, lying below his enemy, who was laughing evilly.

Lily couldn't see anymore, everything was so blurry. She realized she was crying. Wiping away her tears, she looked back up at the mad boy before her.

He looked down at his wrist and somehow, Lily figured that he was checking the time. "Eh, I've got more important things to do so let's just get this over with," He said lazily, and then became completely still and serious. He looked as though he was hypnotized. He said in a stern voice, "The reason I'm here is one main reason. Stay away from _him_. Don't go near _him_. Don't talk to _him_. Don't let _him_ get close to you. Don't fall for _him_. Just stay away from _him_ and you'll be fine. And remember, I don't like that nickname of yours, so whenever _he_ or anyone else says it, you will know I'm watching."

And then he was gone.

•••••

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**dreamergirl86** - _Thanks, I really appreciate the review!_

**girlsrule4ever - **_Thank you, I'm glad you like it! I tell you what, as soon as I get 2 more reviews, I'll post the next chapter!_


	2. An Unexpected Visitor

**girlsrule4ever** - _Thank you very much for the constructive criticism...I'll work on that, but what part are you exactly talking about? At breakfeast? In Lily's bedroom?_

_**A/N: **I hope everyone enjoys this chapter, it's much longer than the last one. Please read and review, I would love to have some constructive criticism! Enjoy!_

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**2. An Unexpected Visitor**

"Sirius, there's no way I'm," Sirius Black's best friend paused, making Sirius lean forward with hope and impatience, "_not_ going to do that!" James grinned and Sirius smiled and sighed with relief. Sirius knew there was no reason to think that James would reject a prank. But still, this prank was the craziest one yet, and James was unpredictable.

"So, how are we going to get to The Leaky Cauldron?" James asked excitedly, his features in a look of unexplainable excitement. Sirius didn't have the same expression. He hadn't given one single thought about how they would arrive at Diagon Alley.

"Er-I haven't quite figured that one out yet," Sirius admitted with a sigh.

James chuckled. "I should have known. Then I guess we better figure that out, eh?"

So they sat down and planned their best prank yet, not even imagining that this one idiotic prank would change the whole wizard world. This immature little joke on someone would change everything. It would begin something that, no matter what they did, would last eternity. Just two teenage boys having fun, would change the future forever.

•••••

Lily stood there stunned for a minute, then shook her head and ran over to her mom. Both mother and daughter began crying.

The ropes that the stranger had shot at Mrs. Evans were now hanging loosely around her trembling body. Lily gently pulled the ropes away from her mother and collapsed into her lap, wanting to be cradled and hugged like a baby again. She just wanted everything to be simple. To be able to cry about a tiny scrape when you fell off your bike. To be tucked in at night. To be sung to. But life _isn't_ simple, and there was nothing anyone could do about that.

Lily and her mom lye there together, rocking each other back and forth, crying silently, until there were no more tears left to cry.

After sniffing loudly, Lily asked quietly, "What do we do now?"

Lily's mom shrugged loosely and whispered, "I guess we just live like it never happened." Lily nodded and decided mentally to erase it from her memory.

"But Lily, who was he talking about?" Her mother asked, curiosity and fear slowly consuming her thoughts.

"I don't know, Mum, I don't know."

Lily went up to bed, not even paying attention to the fact that she was still in her clothes. She heard Petunia's rock music still pounding through the walls, and Lily desperately wanted to switch places with her sister. Lily had always believed that she (Lily) was the luckiest one, not the one hiding in her room every day. But now, Lily wished with all her might that she could be in Petunia's shoes. To not have to worry about people and incidents like these, it would be wonderful. She slowly climbed into bed, and her stomach growled. Lily didn't even notice it. Her eyes fluttered closed, but then with an urge of surprise, she opened them again.

_Oh God. It's Daddy._ Lily thought, and sure enough, when she closed her eyes, there was an image of her father. Fearing that her father would haunt her dreams, Lily kept her eyes wide open the rest of the night.

The next morning, Lily was startled by the sound of a chirping nose coming from her window. She sat up quickly and walked over to her window, pulling apart her white linen curtains. Jade, her owl, was flying outside the window, with a piece of parchment tied to her leg.

Lily quickly opened the window and let her beautiful owl fly in gracefully.

"Hey sweetie," Lily greeted Jade. Jade gently nibbled on Lily's ear and she giggled. She set Jade down on the top part of her chair and gently untied the parcel from her leg. Lily already had an idea of whom it was from. She read it through quickly, smiling to herself.

_Hey Lily! _

That's so great! I'm so proud of you! I'm doing pretty well too. Danny' came home for the last couple of weeks before school starts and we've been hanging out a lot. I've really missed him over the last year.

Anyways, that sounds great! My mum said that's fine! So do you want to just meet at Diagon Alley? On what day? Let me know- I can't wait!

Love,  
Mandy

Danny, Mandy's 19-year-old brother, with his shaggy brown hair, dark, mysterious blue eyes, strong, broad nose, and handsome body, was the funniest person Lily had ever met. Mandy and Danny were very close and since Danny was the youngest Auror ever, he had a lot of responsibility. Therefore, he rarely got to visit his family. Lily was glad that Mandy and him were still so close, even when they lived so far apart from each other. She used to have a huge crush on him, blushing at the slightest recognition that he gave her, not having enough courage to even say hi. Lily still had a crush on him, but she wasn't the immature teenager she had been last year; the kind of teenager who wrote 'I love Danny' all over a notebook.

Lily smiled happily, recovering those old memories, and then the events from last night rushed back into her head. She shook her head, as if shaking out all the bad memories of yesterday. She quickly changed into pajamas, so that Petunia wouldn't ask her why she was dressed in her clothes from yesterday. _That's if Petunia even comes out of her room_. She put on a new smile and happily walked downstairs to start some break feast for her mother and her. Lily had only cooked break feast once or twice so this was very unusual for Lily to do. _But things are going to be different now,_ Lily thought and she got out a pan for some pancakes.

Just as Lily was flipping some eggs, the doorbell rang. She looked up, startled. No one ever came to her house this early in the morning. They didn't get milk or the newspaper, so the loud, chiming noise that filled the house was not a regular occurrence. Lily grabbed her robe, slipped it on and walked quickly to the door. Scared of seeing those yellow eyes again, she slowly looked out of the peephole, and a wave of relief swept over her as she saw Potter's face outside the door, looking nervous. Lily pondered on the thought of just ignoring the doorbell; a smirk came to her pretty face when she thought of this. _Oh, well. I'll answer it. Maybe I'll be able to get to Potter's soft spot,_ Lily thought hopefully and opened the wooden oak door, sending a blast of cool wind from outside. Lily pulled her robe around her tightly and stifled a shiver. The last thing she wanted was to have James rubbing her arms to get her warmer. _Although that probably would warm me up._ It was as if a second voice had just been born in Lily's mind. _Potter! Touching me! The thought is just revolting _Lily whispered to herself angrily.

"Hey, Lily," James said, a gleam in his hazel eyes at seeing Lily in only pajamas, a robe, and bunny slippers. Another breeze rushed toward them, taking care of James' usual habit of rustling his hair to make it look messy. He did it anyway.

"What do you want Potter?" She asked harshly. Her hair hadn't been brushed at all, neither her teeth, and for some reason, Lily didn't care. _Maybe he won't like me as much now,_ Lily thought hopefully. _But that will never happen._ There was that second voice again.

James, however, thought Lily looked like a Goddess every single second of every day. Her hair was messy and curly at the moment, making her look mysterious and sexy. Ducky pants that easily came five or six inches beyond her feet fit her legs loosely and James could just make out a white spaghetti strap shirt, with a ducky on it and the words, 'Quack, quack' behind her robe. James quietly chuckled to himself as he thought, _what is it with girls and animals?_ Lily noticed James taking in her looks and she pulled the robe closer around her.

"Well, I was just checking in on you. I could have sworn I heard some screaming last night, and when I looked outside, all your lights were off except in the kitchen, and it was 5:00. A little early for bedtime, eh?" James said smoothly. This was all true; he'd left out the part where he had climbed out of his window, crossed the street, and spied on Lily and Mrs. Evans crying in the kitchen. James might seem like an immature teenaged boy with a huge crush on his neighbor, but anything mysterious that went on at Lily's house, James worried about.

Lily's face turned extremely pale and James immediately noticed. His eyes turned to concern and he reached out a hand as if to touch Lily's cheek and soothe her from whatever was bothering her but then he quickly pulled his hand back. Lily noticed this and wondered why he didn't try to touch her. It's not like he hadn't before. _Maybe he's changing_, the second voice in her head echoed. Lily didn't fight that thought.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lily muttered, her eyes scanning the floor. She knew James could tell that she was lying, but there was no way she was going to tell James Potter the events of last night; especially when she was in her pajamas, with no parent awake. Even if she did explain everything, she most likely would have started crying, which would lead into probably soaking James' blue cotton shirt. He would possibly rub her back and embrace her into a friendly hug, wipe away her tears, tell her everything would be okay…Lily stopped herself immediately. This second voice was starting to control her feelings now, too!

A smell from the kitchen caught Lily's attention. She sniffed and then it dawned on her; she had left the eggs on the stove this entire time! She quickly turned around, completely forgetting about James, and ran to the kitchen. James stood there confused, then followed her inside and closed the front door behind him.

"Shit!" Lily cursed as she turned off the stove and dumped the eggs in the trash can. She put the pan under the sink water and turned on the stove fan.

"Can I do anything to help?" James' voice floated toward Lily, and she jumped. She'd completely forgotten him. She turned around, and was surprised to see his expression looking serious and concerned. His eyes seemed to be more pronounced than Lily had ever seen them, and she felt herself falling into their depth. She quickly shook her head and the feeling of the second voice was gone.

"Sure. Can you get out two plates? They're in the top right cabinet," Lily, said, surprised and angry with herself for letting James monger in her house longer. James, apparently, was stunned too, for he stood there for a moment, taking it in, and then coming back to his senses, walked over to the cabinet and reached up. Lily couldn't help but steal a glance at him, at his tall, lean body. He was wearing faded blue jeans, a dark blue shirt, and big, brown boots. He looked amazingly handsome. _What are you thinking, Lily?_ She regretfully pushed the urge to slap herself aside.

James grabbed the plates and carefully lowered them down so that he was holding them around his navel. When Lily looked over, he raised his eyebrows in question.

"Just put them on the placemats in the den." Lily made sure to not look him in the eyes. _What is going on with me? I can't even look at James Potter, the stupid prat that I despise. What is wrong with me?_ Lily questioned herself angrily.

James nodded and headed out of the kitchen. As soon as he was outside of the kitchen, he realized that he didn't know where the den was. _Perfect_, James thought, a smirk rising to his face. _Now I will finally be able to see Lily's bedroom._ He looked behind him to make sure that Lily was still busy, set the plates carefully down on a nearby chair, and then quickly, but quietly, headed up the stairs. About the only placement of rooms that James knew about Lily's house was where her bedroom was, for he spied on her often without Lily's knowing, and the kitchen, which he had just recently discovered. So, obviously he knew that Lily's bedroom had to be upstairs, for it was even with James' room across the street, and he knew it had to be the closest room to the street because there would be no other way to be able to see into her window.

As James stepped up onto the second to last step, it creaked. He instinctively ducked down immediately behind the solid wall that was connected to the stairs.

"Mom?" Came Lily's voice, and James could tell she was still in the kitchen. "You up yet?" Her voice was now near the bottom of the stairs. James silently cursed himself. He sensed, rather then heard, Lily pause, and then heard her house-shoes sliding back to the kitchen. James sighed with relief. He continued up the stairs.

At the top, he took a left down a wide hallway, pausing to look at the arrangement of pictures on the right side of the wall; next to a bathroom, which he guessed, was Lily's. They were pictures of Lily as a baby, then a toddler, a cute child, and then the real changes started to happen. She changed from pouty cheeks to high cheekbones, from a round face to a more elegant oval shape. Obviously, the change in height was big, from Lily's head being at her mother's waist, to being an inch taller than her. Her small lips formed into larger, rounder lips and her tangled, fiery red hair became long, wavy, shiny shades of a burning candle. The biggest difference in her, however, were her eyes. From when she was around 7 years of age, her eyes had been a cloudy bluish-green, but then changed into an everlasting, forest, and mysterious green. They were the color of grass that's hidden in a dark and dense forest that's always wet with dew and soft to the touch. Or the kind of green that you can't take your eyes from, that pulls you into the very darkest and bottommost part, the kind of green that you fall in love with.

James shook his head to get the pictures out of his mind, but they gently stayed there, as if they had been glued to the side of his brain. He walked the rest of the length of the hallway, until he came to a white door that was closed. There were pieces of paper with 'Lily' on it that covered the front of the door. Some were colorful with all the colors of the rainbow; others were just drawn with a pencil. 'Lily' was somehow made out of animals on one sheet. On another, it was made of different designs, and James had to admit, it was creative. _But I still don't see what makes them so special._ James sighed silently and gently pushed the door open, to reveal Lily Marie Evans bedroom.

Immediately, blurs of blue, green, turquoise, and colors of the sea came into James' view. Blinking, James realized that the whole theme of Lily's bedroom was of the ocean. Her walls were painted a light blue, with creatures of the sea decorating it. Dolphins, fish, sea horses, whales, sharks, starfish, squids, and many other creatures took over the walls surrounding James. Her dark blue, large desk was sponged with pale, yellow stars, which James guessed were starfish. It looked like professional work. She had all her Hogwarts books stacked up on the top shelf of the desk, and stuffed animals of the living animals of the sea were placed randomly here and there; it made it look creative and alive. Her flat screen computer was on the right side of her desk and there was a black computer chair that was facing opposite of the desk, as if someone had just gotten up from it. James' eyes fluttered to Lily's bed. It was a patchwork quilt, with sea grass colors, colors of the bottom of the ocean and colors of the top of the ocean. There was light green, dark green, turquoise, some yellow and pale orange. A light-colored crotched blanket at the end of her bed brought together all the deep colors of the ocean. Her window curtains were a turquoise color with sea horses decorating it. It really looked as if you had just walked into an ocean.

Another of James' usual smirks arrived to his face, and he walked towards Lily's dresser, which matched the desk. He gently pulled out the topmost drawer and cautiously looked inside. With a pang of disappointment, he saw that it was her pajamas. There were a couple of plain shorts and big t-shirts that looked as if they could be her fathers', her dead fathers', James corrected himself. He felt a sudden sadness for Lily, and then it disappeared, as he looked through her other sleepwear. There were flannel-colored pants and shirts and a couple more ducky pajamas. Satisfied, James closed the drawer, a little too loud, and reached down to open the next drawer, a growing curiosity arising inside him.

"James Potter, what the bloody _hell_ do you think you are doing?" Lily's angry voice shocked James so much that he jumped nearly a foot in the air. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled up, and he slowly turned around, knowing he was going to get yelled at as if Lily was his mother and he was a naughty little boy who had been stealing cookies from the cookie jar.

When he was facing Lily, he slowly raised his eyes up to hers, and stared at her guiltily. He felt like a little kid. _I'm not going to let her get the best out of me,_ James thought selfishly and he pushed his guiltiness aside, although he couldn't get rid of all of it. It sat at the bottom of his stomach like a bad ache.

Lily looked ferocious; she looked like an animal. Her hair literally looked like it was on fire. Her face was so red with anger; you could hardly tell where her hair and face met. This made her green eyes stick out more than ever. With her hands on her hips, she looked as though she could have killed James right then and there. She was actually kind of scary, and James felt a tiny bit of fright seeping into him.

James shrugged casually and said, "Just browsing." He tried to look as calm as he could, but, obviously, that was _not_ the thing to do.

"ARG!" She said through gritted teeth. She stomped her foot angrily and closed the door behind her, so that she could commit murder right then and there and her mom wouldn't know. This thought fluttered through James' brain and he diminished it.

"Potter, do you have any idea how angry I am with you right now?" Lily almost screamed, her hair falling out of her loose ponytail. James nodded automatically. Maybe this wasn't the best time to try and act cool. "I don't know what to even say to you! You're the rudest, stupidest, ego-inflated, stubborn, immature, inconsiderate fool that I have ever had the unpleasantness to meet. I could go on and on, you know."

James nodded again and quietly said, "I'm sorry. I invaded your privacy without your permission and misused your trust, if you had ever even given any of your trust to me."

Lily looked as if she had been slapped. _He sounds serious,_ she thought, amazed. She realized that she had been holding her breath so she let out a deep sigh. "Why did you come up here anyway?" Lily asked, her voice more under control. She did love her room and all, but she didn't think it was the best room for a teenage witch. Especially since she had had these decorations since she was 8 years old.

"I don't know. I guess I was just curious to see my love's bedroom," James said casually, and shifted his weight to his other leg.

"I'm not your _love_," Lily mumbled.

James sighed impatiently and said in a straight-out voice, "Yes you are. You always will be and there's nothing that anyone can do to change that."

Lily looked appalled at James being so straightforward and serious that she felt heat rising to her cheeks. _Jeez Louse Lily! Blushing because of _James Potter_? You're a shame, a real shame,_ Lily scolded herself, and this time, she wanted to run into a wall and sink into it and never come back out.

"So…Nice knickers." James teased. He could at least act like he had seen 'THE DRAWER'.

Lily's sudden shyness turned into disbelief and anger again. "You didn't!" Another blush rose to her face as she remembered her Superwoman underwear that Mandy had given to her for Christmas as a joke last year.

"Naw, I didn't. I was about to, though, before you stormed in here like a wildfire." James' classic smirk was back, although it had more of a smile to it this time.

Lily sighed with relief, and then questioned James. "How do I know that you're not lying? How do I know that you didn't looked through every drawer in this room?"

"You don't. All you have is my trust." And he winked at her, now completely smiling.

Lily was about to protest but another voice came from the hallway. "Lily, is someone else here?" A pause. Then the voice turned to complete utter disbelief. "Are you cooking break feast?" Lily could just imagine her mother's face turning into horror at the thought of Lily using an oven and she sheepishly grinned. Ever since she had caught a bagel on fire in the microwave two years ago (which was mostly because the bagel was lying on a paper towel: perfect fire source), her mother had been very hesitant to let Lily cook anything that had to be heated. When Lily was home alone, her meals usually consisted of cereal and bananas.

"Yes, there is someone here. And yes, I was cooking. But the eggs got burnt, big surprise," Lily called back down the hallway.

"Who's here?" Her mother asked, sounding tense and nervous.

"Potter from across the street." Lily said bluntly.

"There's a _boy_ here!" Then they heard stomping feet headed towards Lily's room. She opened the door, which revealed her in a long white nightgown with a light blue robe covering her. "No offense to you, Son. I've always thought you were a well-mannered boy." Lily gave a dry laugh that clearly meant she completely disagreed from what her mother was saying. Mrs. Evans turned to Lily. "But you. You know I won't allow any boy in this house of mine to come in, especially to your room, without my knowing!"

"I know Mom! It's just-" She glanced at James, a complicated expression upon her delicate face. She sighed and seemed to have made a decision to herself. James shot her a questioning look but she ignored it. Lily paused as if figuring out what to say and then seemed to have come upon a solution. "Potter needed to borrow one of my Hogwarts books because he left his at school and he needed it to finish some summer homework. I was cooking so I told him to go on upstairs to my bedroom to fetch the book. I came up here because he couldn't find it" Lily explained. She sounded so honest and serious that there was no doubt Mrs. Evans wouldn't believe her. James' jaw dropped. _Damn, she's almost as good at lying as I am!_ James thought, aghast.

"Yeah, I was just borrowing a book. Honest, oh look! Here it is!" James played along as he grabbed "The Standard Book Of Spells, Grade 7". He gave Lily a sly grin when her mother was looking away.

"OK. Well, you had your reasons so I'll let it slide this time. But next time," Lily's mother put out a disregarding finger, "You make sure to tell me." Mrs. Evans turned to James, who had literally had to put his hand up to close his mouth. He still couldn't believe that Lily had lied so well to her mom and that she had lied for James, who she hated. She could have easily told the truth and then Mrs. Evans would have been hysterical and most likely would have kicked James out of the house and threaten him to never come back again. Lily just amazed James more and more every minute, and along with being completely surprised, his love for Lily grew. "Would you care to join us for break feast? I surely wouldn't want you to leave this house after all this confusion without some decent food in your stomach. I can whip up some eggs and my famous French toast, which I have to admit, is pretty good." Mrs. Evans gave a hopeful smile.

James nodded happily; glad that he would be able to spend even _more_ time in Lily's dear old home.

Mrs. Evans smiled cheerfully and walked out of Lily's bedroom. Lily looked around carefully, as if checking to make sure James hadn't destroyed her room in the last five minutes.

"Well." James said. For the first time, he didn't know what to say to Lily. He swung his arms in front of him and shifted his weight. Then, he stopped. A confusing question arose in his mind. "Why'd you do that?" He asked, for once, seriously.

"Do what?" Lily seemed to have been in a trance, and hearing James' voice, whom she had forgotten was there, startled her.

"Lie to your mom. You could have gotten me banned from this house forever…But you didn't," James tried to search her eyes for an answer, but she just gazed away, thinking. She looked confused and distraught. Her face was no longer red from anger, and the only thing that showed proof of the "fight" earlier was her auburn hair that was now in a messy tangle.

Lily shrugged nervously. She honestly didn't know herself. "I don't know," She said, confirming her feelings. "I just didn't want to get you in trouble, even though you do that enough already." She shot a beautiful grin at him and then, realizing what she just did, became horrified at herself.

_I just smiled at Potter! This is just too weird..._Lily thought, so very confused.

James, too, was pretty confused. _Is Lily actually starting to like me? How could she? I mean, I wish with all my might that she would like me, but she completely and utterly hates me so how could, all of a sudden, she just grin at me?_ These questions were buzzing inside his head, like a hive of hungry bees.

Lily looked up just as James was walking towards her. "Lily?" He asked quietly.

"Yes, Potter?" She said, and suddenly, all her feelings of hatred and disgust for James flooded back to her. James hesitated and then said reluctantly, "I guess we should go downstairs and have your mum's fantastic French toast."

"Yes, I guess so."

"James, dear, what would you like to drink? We have milk, orange juice, and water," Mrs. Evans asked, interrupting James's staring at Lily, who looked uncomfortable and nervous. They were downstairs in the kitchen, Lily and James awkwardly standing by each other.

"Milk would be great, Mrs. Evans," James answered politely. _Ugh,_ Lily thought, turning away from James. _I wish he'd just be himself, and then Mum could see who he really is._

Mrs. Evans nodded and, trying to break the silence, asked, "So, James. What have you been doing this summer?"

"Oh, being just the typical teenager. Watching TV, sleeping in late, playing video and computer games, hanging out with friends, talking," James shrugged. "Just taking it easy, I guess."

"Well, yes, I suppose that's what _normal_ kids do at your age," Mrs. Evans said worriedly, glancing at Lily. James noticed and, smiling a sly grin, turned to Lily.

"What have _you_ been doing, Lily?" He asked, impatiently waiting for an answer.

"Nothing that concerns you," Lily whispered, so her mother couldn't hear her.

"Everything about you concerns me." It was more of a statement than anything else.

_Is he ever going to give up? He just can't seem to get the idea in that tiny brain of his that I will never like him!_ Lily thought stubbornly, and she sighed.

James, who looked concerned and serious, whispered, "I'm never going to give up on you, Lily. Nothing can make me not love you." Lily almost gasped. It was as if he had read her mind!

"Go on Lily. Tell James here what you've been doing this whole summer," Mrs. Evans encouraged, interrupting Lily and James's silent conversation with each other.

"Er–Well, I've been reading books mostly," Lily admitted, suddenly self-conscious.

"School books or just regular boring books?" James inquired.

"Regular boring books."

"Oh." Then he added in an offhand voice, "Sounds like fun."

"Yeah, I just get so wrapped up in the books," Lily said, her eyes brightening up. And then she was off, telling James of all the fantasy and love novels she'd been reading, of the unforgettable tales of action and romance, of her bookworm habits, such as having to put her hand down on the upcoming sentences as to not skip ahead, of her late nights when she just couldn't put the books down, and, amazingly, it didn't bother her one bit that she was talking to James Potter about this, for this was one subject matter that she could not resist to get excited about.

"Lily. _Lily!_ **LILY**!" Mrs. Evans screamed in her daughter's ears, making Lily jump and look up at her mother. Mrs. Evans continued, "While you've been talking your head off to James, here, I've been making us some break feast, and guess what? It's done!" Lily could detect some anger and sarcasm in her mom's voice.

"Oh." Lily thought. "Let's eat, then!"

Mrs. Evans sighed angrily and James chuckled. As soon as a plate was set down in front of Lily, which was filled with scrambled eggs, buttery pancakes with maple syrup, and brown bacon, she started stuffing her face. She took a bite and would place another bite of food in her mouth before she had finished chewing; her eyes looking hungry like her stomach. James's mouth dropped. _Lily? Being a pig! This is just unbelievable._ Before James could think anything else, Mrs. Evans spoke.

"Lily! Stop it immediately! You're acting like a homeless person! Get yourself together! I can't believe your lack of manners; especially when we have a guest!" Mrs. Evans scolded, looking ashamed.

Lily looked up and seemed to realize that there were other people at the table beside herself. She quickly finished chewing the current food in her mouth, which consisted of scrambled eggs with syrup and butter, wiped her mouth, and sat up straight. She smiled guiltily. James couldn't take it any longer; He started laughing. Lily looked at him surprisingly and then she, too, started cracking up. Neither one of them had a real reason to be laughing; it just felt like this serious situation needed some more happiness and laughter. At first, Mrs. Evans looked appalled to see her daughter laughing right after she had scolded her. _And_ James was laughing! Then, Mrs. Evans seemed to have caught the humor in the situation, as if it had woven itself around her, and she also started giggling. Soon, everyone was wheezing and crying tears of laughter.

Fifteen minutes later, James was heading toward the front door, Lily nervously following him.

"Um- Well, thanks for having me over," he said awkwardly. What did you say in a situation where you barged into your crush's house, sneaked in her room, and then was invited to breakfast? Seemed like a kind of weird thing to say thank you to…

Lily gave James a confused face and then said, "Sure, whatever." She, too, was at a loss for words.

"Well, I guess I'll see you in a few days." James said.

"Yes- Wait –a few days? School doesn't start for another week-and-a-half," Lily said suspiciously.

James just grinned and then winked, his hazel eyes gleaming, and then went out the front door, leaving Lily with her tangled emotions.

•••••


	3. Leaving Home

**dreamergirl86 -** _Oh, that's fine! I'm just glad to have my reader back! Well, here's some more for ya: D_

_**A/N:** Sorry it took me so long to update...My internet's been crazy and acting all weird on me so I wasn't able to get on. I know, excuses, excuses. I can't wait- 5 more days and The Half-Blood Prince is in our hands! Oh, and when that's released, I don't know if I'll be posting as often because I'll be absorbed in that but also I have 3 weeks of dance from morning to night so I'm not going to have a lot of free time, but please stick with me anyway! I would really like some critisism, I love this story but I know it needs some improvement and I would love to hear from you what that improvement is. OK, last thing, I'm sorry this one is shorter but I had to break it into parts somewhere and it just seemed to be the right spot. Sorry I babbled so much...Enjoy! _

**_And..._Read and Review!**

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**3. Leaving Home**

One week later, Lily was upstairs in her bedroom packing for Diagon Alley.

"Okay," Lily said to herself. "I have my toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush, face wash, shampoo, conditioner, make-up, pajama's, socks, shoes…" She mentally checked off her packing list.

"LILY! You've got 5 minutes!" Mrs. Evans yelled up the stairs.

"Alright!" Lily frantically answered and began running around the room checking for anything she might need. When she had finished scanning her room for any missing objects, she hurriedly walked down the hallway to Petunia's room. Lily knocked on the door, the rock music steadily flowing out through the cracks.

"Petunia? Can you open the door, please?" Lily asked over the roaring music. Even though Petunia was a complete brat, Lily felt that she had to say goodbye to her anyways. After all, she was her sister.

The door swung open quickly and a thin, blonde teenage girl emerged from it. Petunia's sudden appearance was so abrupt that Lily jumped in shock. After regaining herself, Lily peered around Petunia's shoulder, wondering how her sister managed to practically live in her room. Lily quickly scanned her sister's bedroom, something she didn't get to do very often due to Petunia's snobby way of hiding herself. Not surprisingly, Lily saw more than 20 magazines sprawled across her bed; Petunia liked to know what was going on in the world; in other words, she liked gossip more than anything else. Besides the pile of magazines, Petunia's room was remarkably clean and organized. A little smaller than Lily's bedroom, Petunia's room contained many neutral colored pieces of furniture. Lily's green eyes saw a bulletin board upon the wall that Petunia's bed was pushed against and on the board was a picture of Petunia looked particularly smug with a large, beefy boy. _Must be that Vernon boy she's constantly talking about…that's _when_ she actually opens her mouth and says something,_ Lily thought to herself.

Petunia noticed Lily's searching eyes and pulled the door closer to her body so that now all Lily could see of her sister's bedroom was the corner of the wall.

"What do you want? Have you come to brag about your special," Petunia looked around, as though making sure there wasn't some neighbor hanging from her bedroom window, hoping to find out some horrible secret of Petunia's family, "_magical_ school?" Petunia snarled and glanced around her room again, staring for a second at the magazines on her bed, like the celebrities inside of them would come alive and start gossiping about Petunia herself.

"No, I've come to say goodbye. I'm off to my school and I won't see you till Christmas," Lily replied coolly.

"Good ridden…" Petunia whispered to herself, but Lily clearly heard her sister's snide remark. Ignoring it, she opened her arms and Petunia, regretfully, let Lily hug her. When Lily pulled away, Petunia stepped back and brushed her hand down her shirt, as if trying to get rid of any weird magical things Lily could have passed to her.

"Well, I hope you enjoy school…" Lily said awkwardly and, grabbing her trunk from her room, she added, "And tell Vernon 'hi' for me."

Petunia scowled and said, "I sure will!" and then slammed her door shut again.

"Lily! Come on! They're here!" Mrs. Evans yelled again. Lily heard the front door opening and warm voices greeting each other.

Desperately wanting to see her best friend, Lily rushed down the stairs, skipping two at a time, her trunk banging against the sides as it followed her. The trunk gathered speed as it hit the stairs, and it ran into Lily, causing Lily to scream. Her massive trunk pushed Lily on top of it, and both Lily and her trunk slid the rest of the way downstairs. The people to witness this: Mrs. Evans, Mandy, and Mandy's mother, Mrs. McNeill. The sight was so odd that you couldn't help but laugh at it; a distraught frustrated-looking teenager whose hair was flying everywhere, her eyes bulging, and a huge trunk open at the bottom of a staircase. When Lily had regained herself, she was greeted by three laughing voices behind her. She turned around to face them, and was embarrassed that her mother, best friend, and best friend's mom were standing there, laughing at _her_. Lily took in her surroundings, and then she too started laughing.

Ten minutes later, Mandy and her mom were loading Mandy's things into Mrs. Evan's car. Lily had redone her hair and tried to make herself look as though she hadn't just fallen down a staircase.

Lily headed to her room to take one last look, and her eyes watered as she opened the familiar door. As much as she loved Hogwarts, a home was still a home, and she would miss hers very much. She walked over to her display of stuffed animals, running her hands over the soft man-made furs of dogs, cats, monkeys, rabbits, bears, and so many other animals. She smiled, remembering the hours when she would play house or vet with these cherished toys when she was little. This was her home, where she had lived almost all her life. It was where Lily had drawn all over the walls with crayons when she was four, and then was scolded with a spanking for her wrongdoing; where she had received her first pet ­ a hamster – at the age of eight, and then presented with a puppy named Snuffles, who later ran away and was never seen again; where Lily had spent entire nights talking to Mandy on her bed; where Lily had cried for hours after the loss of her father; where Lily had tried what some teenagers once attempted- committing suicide; and, although she saw no significance to it, it was where Lily had first seen James.

She slowly left her bedroom, tears now crawling down her pale cheeks. Lily walked outside to see Mrs. McNeill and Mandy clinging to each other tightly. Mrs. McNeill kissed Mandy on the cheek, gave Mrs. Evans and Lily a hug, got into her Land Cruiser, and drove away.

As Lily was about to slide into her mother's minivan, something, or rather some_one_, caught her attention. Lily looked up to a second-story bedroom window across the street and saw James's face peering down at her. He did not smirk or open his window and try to embarrass her, he simply watched her as though watching something entrancing and beautiful. Lily was struck by his gaze; no one had ever looked at her like that. She slowly allowed her eyes to briefly meet his and, as though struck by lightening, she suddenly saw images of her and James together. Some were of them holding hands, of kissing each other delicately, or clinging to each other as though they never wanted to let go. The last image was of Lily and James's faces and as Lily looked into her own eyes, she saw they were full of love. The images suddenly faded away as James broke their eye contact, and Lily saw James's face full of shock. Lily was sure her face mirrored his but she also felt confused and a deep blush slowly rose to her cheeks. What had that meant? Were those images from the future? _Surely not! I loathe James and I doubt that will ever change_, Lily assured herself but as she glanced back at James, she saw his face, and his eyes pleaded her to believe and trust those images, for he knew Lily would simply shrug it off. She confirmed his prediction by ignoring his continuous stares and she slid gently onto the warm leather back seat of the minivan.

Her confusion over James's and her "connection" drifted to the back of her mind as Mandy joined her in the back seat. Suddenly, Lily was extremely happy. She was going to Diagon Alley with her best friend. No parents. No professors. No rules. No bedtimes. No sulking sisters. And, no James. Or so she thought…

•••••

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**dreamergirl86** - _I'm so glad you liked this chapter! I was afraid it might be tooboring!_

**Lottie** - _Yay! Another reader! I'm so happy that you like this!_

**Hazelocean** - _I will try to update either tomorrow or Thursday! Thanks for reading!_


	4. The Leaky Cauldron

_**A/N: **So I won't be surprised if a lot of you hate me...It's been forever since I've updated and I'm so sorry. I had to read two books (one was 618 pages long with _very_ small print) for my summer reading assignment before I could finish reading the 6th book, and once I finished reading it, all my dance camps began and I haven't had any time to update. Thank you to those who've stuck with me, it really means a lot._

_This chapter is definitely not the longest one but once again, I had to find a place to stop it and this just seemed to be the right point. I might be able to update again later this week, it just depends on how much free time I have. So here's a little of what happened last chapter just to refresh your memory:_

Her confusion over James's and her "connection" _(This was when she looked up and saw James staring down at her with an expression that she'd never seen beforeand she suddenly had all these images of her and James together...) _drifted to the back of her mind as Mandy joined her in the back seat. Suddenly, Lily was extremely happy. She was going to Diagon Alley with her best friend. No parents. No professors. No rules. No bedtimes. No sulking sisters. And, no James. Or so she thought…

**Rachel**- _Thanks! No, the hooded figure is not from the future...he will appear again later in the story but that's all I'm going to say. :-)_

Please **Read and Review!**

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**4. The Leaky Cauldron**

By the time they had arrived in downtown London, Lily was so excited she was shaking. Mandy had to keep on patting her on the head to try and calm her down.

"Lily, how come you're so excited? We still have a whole week until school starts!" Mandy asked when Lily started nervously biting her nails.

Lily whispered into Mandy's ear, so her mother didn't hear her, "Mandy, don't you understand- we have a _whole week_ without parents, with our _own_ money, on our _own_ time, and _no restrictions_!"

This finally dawned on Mandy, at all the possibilities of fun that they could have over the next week, and she joined Lily in her excitement.

Mrs. Evans drove around looking for a place to park, when Mandy finally pointed at an empty space. They parked next to an extremely bright yellow car that looked as though it was advertising mini-blinds. It had parked almost diagonally over two parking spaces so that Mrs. Evans car was almost halfway in the street and halfway in the parking spot.

"Well, thanks Mandy. You just found the _best_ place to park!" Lily said sarcastically as she slowly squeezed through the car door so she wouldn't hit the 'highlighter yellow' car.

"You're welcome!" Mandy said cheerfully, obviously not noticing the sarcasm in Lily's voice.

Mrs. Evans just rolled her eyes at Lily and she grinned. They unloaded their things from the car, and indeed they got some odd glances, for what kind of mental people would carry two owls in cages in broad daylight, along with two huge trunks?

They started walking toward the hidden Leaky Cauldron. Lily noticed another hidden magical store, though she couldn't think of why there would be more than one building to go into Diagon Alley. This place had a large, ugly brown sign that read, _Quadrille's Magical Pub_, and, like the Leaky Cauldron, it was completely black, though it looked as though it was newer than the Leaky Cauldron, like a couple hundred years younger. Lily decided to ask her mom about this mysterious place.

"Mum, have you ever seen that place before? That 'Quadrille's Magical Pub'?" She pointed towards it and watched her mom's face turn into an expression of confusion.

"What store? I don't see any store over there. There's just an empty alley between Rose's Restaurant and Boutique," Mrs. Evans said, obviously confused.

"Don't you see it? It's right there with the big brown sign. Mandy, do you see it?" Lily asked. Surely they saw it. It wasn't very hard to miss.

"Nope, Lily. Maybe you're coming down with something. Or then again, maybe it's those happy pills you've been taking…" Mandy joked and she and Mrs. Evans laughed. Lily just ignored their voices and they gently floated away.

But Lily couldn't help but glance back at it again before they walked into the Leaky Cauldron. Was she sick? Was she going delusional? Or was there really a place there? Maybe it was another dimension into another magical world. Lily stopped herself right there ­ another dimension? What was she saying? So, she let it fall out of her mind, and replaced it with the excitement of the next 7 days with her best friend.

Walking into the Leaky Cauldron was like walking into a second home (except for Hogwarts, of course.). Lily had known the bartender, Tom, a mangy, old, bald man with teeth missing, since the day she'd walked into this pub. His looks didn't match his personality; she'd figured that out the first day she'd set foot in the Leaky Cauldron. Instead of being a grumpy, elder like you would expect, he was one of the friendliest persons that she knew. He would sneak her extra pastries, which everyone died for, talk to her for hours while other customers grew impatient. He always charged her less than what he should have, and, since he'd never married or had kids, he loved children and teenagers, which made it easy for Lily to be comfortable around him. He had seen her when she was a young girl, as an 11-year-old, walking down in her pajamas to have a midnight snack and listening intensively to Tom's stories of all the sorts of creatures who traveled into this remarkable pub (a couple of these stories consisted of a giant troll who was kind and smart, friendly centaurs who told the truth, and magical unicorns that talked). Not only was the Leaky Cauldron her second home, but she had her second family here. The same people always worked here, including the sweet Ms. Franbury, with her plump figure, dimpled cheeks, short, sleek brown hair, and misty blue eyes. Ms. Franbury was one of a kind, always acting like a mother to Lily, as Tom acted as a father. She always put chocolate frogs on Lily's pillow every night and came to tuck her in (even though she had her real mother to do that). She made sure that Lily was fed enough and that she never had any complaints. She watched over Lily as though she was her own.

For as long as she could remember, Lily had come to the Leaky Cauldron every year right before school started. Each year, the day that she stayed at the Leaky Cauldron increased, so right before her first year, she was at the Leaky Cauldron for one day. Before her second year began, she stayed at the Leaky Cauldron for two days. On the summer before her third year, three days, fourth year, four days, and so on. Now it was the week before her seventh and final year at Hogwarts, so she would be staying at her second home for seven days. Her mother had agreed to Lily a long time ago that she could spend this last week at the Leaky Cauldron with her best friend, and ever since that day, Lily had been looking forward to this week. It was finally here. But, the strange thing was, she didn't want it to be. She didn't want to leave Hogwarts. Hogwarts was also like a home to her. It was where she had made all of her friends, where she learned the beauties and tragedies of magic, and, to her regret, where she had had the privilege to spend time with the magnificent James Potter. _Let's not get started on him…_Lily told herself.

As soon as Lily was fully inside the Leaky Cauldron, including her trunk, Ms. Franbury rushed over and gave Lily a big, tight hug. Lily hugged her back and smiled.

"Lily! Oh, it's so great to see you! It looks as though you've grown another inch since I last saw you! And you're even more beautiful than I remember! And Mandy! How are you doing, dear?" Ms. Franbury turned to Mandy, also giving her a hug. Then she stepped back and beamed at the three women in front of her.

"Oh, we're going to have so much fun! We can stay up late talking like I did when I was your age! And sneak down to the ice cream parlor and eat some Ice Mice! And you two can tell me all about school, about your favorite classes, the boys you like…" Ms. Franbury stopped at the fading smiles of the two teenagers before her.

"But, of course. I won't take up _all_ your time. This is your last week at the Leaky Cauldron, sadly, and I won't spoil it for you. Merlin knows how much I resisted my parents when I was your age…" The plump, motherly figure walked away, mumbling something that sounded oddly like, "Teenagers…mothers…boys…"

Lily and Mandy giggled. Even if Ms. Franbury spent every minute with them, it would still be a very memorable week.

"Okay, come on girls. Let's carry your things upstairs." Mrs. Evans broke their fit of giggles and they grabbed their trunks and cages and hauled them upstairs to their usual room, Number 4. Lily threw her trunk onto her bed and carried Jade and her cage over to the desk by the window. Just as she was about to turn around to start unpacking, she heard some odd yelling from outside and she could have sworn that she had just heard her name called. She faced the window, opened it, and peered out, using her hand to block the bright sun from blinding her.

"Look! There she is!" Someone yelled. Lily's eyes followed the voice and she gasped aloud. Down in the gravel road, there was a wooden platform set up, with a band sitting on it patiently. And there in the middle of the platform was James Potter. Along with him were his faithful companions, handsome Sirius Black, knowledgeable Remus Lupin, and the stupid git, Peter Pettigrew.

"Potter! What in the name of Merlin's beard do you think you are doing?" Lily screamed, her face already becoming flushed with anger. The images that had appeared in her mind earlier when she was looking at James returned to her memory and a blush added to the deep red of her face.

By now, Mandy and her mother had joined Lily in peering out the window to see what the commotion was.

"Oh, look, Lily! It's James from across the street!" Mrs. Evans said, oblivious to the fact that Lily was _not_ happy to see James. "JA ­ "

"MUM! What are you doing?" Lily interrupted angrily.

"I'm being polite- I'm saying hello to our neighbor. Goodness, Lily. Don't be so uptight!" Mrs. Evans sighed and glanced back out the window.

"Good morning, Mrs. Evans! Wotcher, Mandy!" James hollered, grinning from ear to ear.

"Hello James, dear. Now what is this all about?" Mrs. Evans asked politely.

"Oh, you'll see." James said mischievously, winking.

"Oh no," Mandy sighed.

Lily turned away; she didn't want to know what James was going to do. Probably embarrass her. And just after he had looked at her so differently than ever before! _Brace yourself, Lily_.

"I dedicate this song to the love of my life, LILY EVANS!" James's beaming voice echoed into Lily's ears.

Lily smacked herself in the forehead.

•••••


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